Douglas Spotted Eagle

Douglas Spotted Eagle, is a Grammy-winning musician, noted for his live and recorded performances on the traditional Native American flute, sometimes accompanied by either traditional Navajo (Diné) singers and instrumentalists or a modern band. He is listed in The Native American Almanac as a flutist who does traditional and new age music, and in World Music By Richard Nidel as a flutist and film composer “who incorporates synthesizers into Native sounds.” He is also a lecturer and publisher of instructional books and DVDs for music and video computer software.

Music career

Many call his music “modern ethnic”, as it mixes jazz, new age, pop, and world beat with Native American music. Spotted Eagle received a Grammy Award for his production of Gathering of Nations Powwow, and along with numerous collaborations has released 13 albums under his own name. He was raised in Valley Junction, Iowa, and has been building flutes since he was 12 years old, and he performed traditional music as well as being a guitarist for a popular rock and roll band after his family moved to Salt Lake City, Utah. He was married to a Diné woman from Bluff, Arizona. Spotted Eagle lives in Utah and works in support of youth anti-drug causes as well as being involved in the prevention of child abuse. He has been heavily involved in the Children’s Justice Center as a fundraiser. He also teaches filmmaking to aspiring Native filmmakers. His recording include Canyon Speak Closer to Far Away’, ‘PRAY’, Legend of the Flute Boy and Sacred Feelings.

Video production and software

Spotted Eagle is also involved in the field of video production and regularly writes articles for Videography, Studio, DMN, Creative COW, other magazines, and VASST, and tours doing training for Adobe, Apple, Sony Media Software. His interests outside of music and video production appear to include skydiving. Douglas was nearly killed in a skydiving accident when he made a piloting error. His music is featured and he is a producer of Sundance Media Group’s 2002 video The Way of the Pow-Wow.
Background

He is not an enrolled member of any tribe, yet grew up with both Lakota and Navajo families, the former of which gave him his name when he was 14 or 16. He does not claim tribal membership, but has several Lakota and Navajo family members on his Facebook page that call him “brother.” His adoption into and of Native American culture as well as his use of a Native American name have come under scrutiny. He was raised by his white parents and his real name is Doug Wallentine. He later changed his last name to Collins. He participated in the Sand Creek Massacre site location hearings in Montana, Denver, and Washington D.C..

Spotted Eagle, Douglas (1997). Voices of Native America. Illustrated by Ralph L. Smith. Eagle’s View Pub., ISBN 0-943604-56-7. ISBN 9780943604565120.[9]
Before his name change and public exposure by way of the music world, Douglas Wallentine was an Indian lore writer with at least one book to his name: Making Arrows the Old Way by Douglas
Wallentine, 28 Pages, Publisher: Eagles View Publishing, Date Published: 1988 ISBN 9780943604213 ISBN 943604214